How to prepare your dog for life with and after COVID 19
Welcome back, good to have you here!
With these unprecedented times we are all in, like it or not our lives have changed one way or another. Humans as a species aren’t overly fond of change, especially when it’s beyond our control, and our pets are often no different from this perspective.
When COVID-19 began to rapidly take hold in the UK, it was a matter of time before we had to follow similar strategies to curtail the spread that had been adopted by other countries, such as lockdown procedures. And not only will these procedures effect the human pet owning population, but the pets they live with or care for on a daily basis.
There will undoubtedly be some changes in routine, and for some pets this in and of itself will be tricky to adjust to, but also when life returns to some semblance of normality after, there will (again undoubtedly) be further ramifications that impact the emotional well being of our animals. Now would be a good time to start taking preventative action, to avoid overloading our companions and risking behaviour problems developing.
Biggy the Chi hua hua helping me with some work
But how can we do that Katie?
I’m pleased you asked! If you are working from home and didn’t before, it might be prudent to try and maintain the regular routine your dog or cat had previously, similarly for other pets including horses, being mindful of allowing to rest if this is needed more by your pet.
Keeping them confident by having predictable outcomes to their day might be all they need to maintain their feeling of safety and trust. It will be will also best to also let them decide if they prefer to rest rather than walk or play or train, because changes are tiring! You've probably felt exhausted yourself, that's part of the process of sudden change. This will be individual to your dog and your unique situation.
Home all day?
By being suddenly home but not able to give the attention they might be asking for, probably more so with dogs than cats or rabbits, can be confusing to them. By working on a strong ‘settle’ if you haven’t already, you set them up to succeed when you are home and is a transferable skill, as in when you return to work they are already independent of you! But do bear in mind this is the skill for non interaction, not enforced separation from you. Click HERE for an article on how to teach this
If you work on this while working from home, when back to life as we sort of knew pre-pandemic, your dog should be more self confident about being home alone again but isn’t the entire answer regarding any anxiety they may or may not have about being separated from you. Avoid being overly affectionate with your dog if they aren’t used to this or don’t seek this type of interaction with you, just to avoid overwhelming them. Let your dog choose when, where and how to be affectionate and stop if they ask.
Dogs are naturally social species, so you being around more could make them feel more content for the duration and that’s a good thing, let them enjoy this unexpected time with you and don’t sweat too much about leaving them when you do go back to work. It’s all good!
You do know you aren’t helping me work, right Legs?
Should I stick to a routine?
Yes. Try to feed and walk your pets if they were taken for walks previously either by you or a professional you hired and stick to schedules, especially if you pet is of the sort that relies on routine to minimise potential anxiety. There’s an upsurge in people doing their fitness classes online, if your pets aren’t used to you doing workouts for exercise at home, this may scare, arouse or confuse them. Consider how to adapt your environment to make the adjustment to this easier for them. For instance my dogs rest for a while following meals, so I time my workouts around them or give them something to occupy them like snuffle mat or stuffed Kong and ensure they’ve had their exercise and mental enrichment before rolling my mat out.
Rest is important!
If you have school age children home, do ensure your pets are given plenty of rest and opportunity to remove themselves when they need. Now is a great time to coach your children on social distancing with dogs and other animals; they use body language which we often misinterpret or simply don’t see.
Social distancing success
Do maintain social distancing which will mean a little of our own behaviour change, and adhere to the current legislation while out for those walks such as keeping or popping them on leads as soon as you see people and/or dogs, and if your dogs, like mine, are socially gregarious normally, ensure you take time to guide them away before they get close enough to say hello physically. Take foraging and scent related articles and foods with you to allow you dog time to switch off environmentally, rather than them have time to build up for the predicted out come of saying hi to new people and dogs then be suddenly disallowed doing so. Trust me, i’m having to do this with mine!
Cross roads earlier than you would on that route. perform a gentle U turn, stop and forage on a grass verge whatever allows your dog to focus on something. Similar for dogs who are wanting social distancing from other dogs or people…go to quieter locations and give them time to disengage ideally voluntarily.
Please also keep your dog on lead around people, to minimise risk of spreading from shedding fomites (tiny bits of the virus).
Support for you during pandemic
If the pandemic means your dog or cat are needing additional emotional support and mental stimulation, many trainers and behaviourists like myself are offering behaviour support remotely, and via online classrooms like this brilliant one, click HERE. It would be a good time to help teach your dog to love having their nails trimmed, or other husbandry (daily care) skills like teeth cleaning or brushing, maybe work on that stay you have been promising for ages. Go at your pets’ pace of learning and comfort, there is no rush.
Do email me to book online behaviour sessions if you like help, I’ve a feeling this situation will be continuing for longer than imagined and I am here to support and guide you and your pets.
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